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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25066708">Because There's Nothing After Tomorrow</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wtfisgoingonhere/pseuds/Wtfisgoingonhere'>Wtfisgoingonhere</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>A Bit of Fluff, Angst, But mostly angst, Cuddling, First Kiss, Implied Character Death, M/M, Tea and Chess, You Have Been Warned, not happy ending</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 02:01:20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>9,577</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25066708</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wtfisgoingonhere/pseuds/Wtfisgoingonhere</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>They’re gonna die, they all know it. The next expedition is clearly a suicide. Even Erwin doesn’t pretend otherwise. They’re not dead yet, though. They still have one night to make things matter.</p><p>Or: because Levi taught him to live with no regrets, Eren decides he’ll die without.</p><p>Or: because I fucking needed angst and I couldn’t get this out of my mind.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Levi/Eren Yeager</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>89</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Because There's Nothing After Tomorrow</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They know they are going to die, have known for a few days already.</p><p>Erwin announced the next expedition four days ago. An expedition outside the Walls supposed to last seven days. They will <em>never</em> last seven days, they all know it. This expedition was <em>heavily suggested </em>by members of the government, those same members that wanted to execute Eren because of his titan’s powers, those same members that always were very reluctant to give their money to the Survey Corps. If Historia was still Queen, it would never happen, Eren knows it. But she died one year ago because of the epidemic that decimated the inside of Walls Sina.</p><p>And since, nothing is the same. Or, it has gone back to how it was before Historia. And with the knowledge of what the Survey Corps succeeded to do to the previous government, the new members are very hostile toward the Corps.</p><p>Eren is actually surprised they waited a whole year before taking the matter in their hands.</p><p>Of course, it’s not mathematically sure that they’ll all die. But if some of them return, they will be sent in another expedition in one month, and then one month later. Again, it was <em>heavily implied</em>.</p><p>They all agreed to die all in one time. It would be less difficult for the survivors.</p><p>Knowing it doesn’t make things easier.</p><p>They’re soldiers. They’re all familiar with death and grief, and by entering the Survey Corps they all agreed more or less to die fighting the titans. But they agreed believing they could maybe survive, or that their death would save Humanity. Now of course, it was nothing more than a discreet execution.</p><p>They’re all familiar with grief, but grieving his own life, his own dreams and future is far more difficult than expected. In the heat of battle, most of them are ready to put their lives in the line to save their friends, but quietly tucked behind the Walls in the warmth of the castle they use as HQ, death seems far less appealing.</p><p>Surprisingly, very few soldiers broke down at hearing the announcement. Eren had thought they would be much more numerous to protest, to cry or try to desert. But they nearly all saluted formally the next morning when Erwin did a little motivating speech, and Eren felt proud to be part of these men and women. Soldiers, until the very end. Ready to dedicate their hearts in a last raid and take down as many titans as possible with them.</p><p>The last raid of the Survey Corps, the last flight of the Wings of Freedom.</p><p>But before being soldiers, they’re human, and it is difficult to come to term with the fact that they will die. They all try to find a way to cope with the idea.</p><p>The last few days, Eren often heard sobbing noises when he walked in the corridors of the castle. He never did anything about it, and ignored it tactfully when someone reappeared after a small absence with red eyes and a nervous gaze. He understands. Dying is scary.</p><p>Oppositely, some looked relieved. It was most of the time soldiers who lost their comrades or family recently. Or soldiers who are tired, tired of fighting and fearing for their lives every time they go outside the Walls. It’s comforting in a way, knowing that death is finally coming, and how, and when, and that they can do nothing about it. Except maybe deter it of a few minutes or hours.</p><p>Most of them act normally, though. As if not thinking about, not talking about will prevent it from happening. That’s stupid, Eren thinks. It will happen anyway. But he’s part of those who try to forget. They have to live until the fateful day, after all. So he wakes up in the morning, he eats with his squad, and trains, and eats, and trains, and goes to sleep. He laughs when he can because a part of him is acutely aware he doesn’t have much time left, and picks fight with Jean more often than not, and tease Sasha and Connie and Armin more than usual. He even hugs Mikasa, one time. It makes him feel weird and relieved at the same time. She’s his sister after all.</p><p>But tonight is the last night before the expedition, and reality catches up with them. No more fleeing. The atmosphere in the mess hall is electric. Sasha and Connie are bickering and laughing hysterically, Jean looks grim, Mikasa stares at Eren, and Armin plays with his food, his hand shaking slightly. Eren feels blank. That’s it. The last evening with his friends.</p><p>He turns and looks at the officers’ table, and his gaze falls on Levi. Levi, who isn’t different than usual, Levi who didn’t change anything in their training in the past few days, Levi who looks like he’s the only one genuinely not caring. Levi, who’s already staring at him. Eren smiles a bit at him in answer and looks away.</p><p>The doors of the mess hall bang open and Hange appears. Everyone looks at them curiously, and Eren winces. They’re preparing something, and he doesn’t know if it’s good or not.</p><p>“Can somebody tell me what the MP ever did for us?” They shout.</p><p>Eren’s wince transforms in a smile. Hange sounds pissed, and <em>that</em> is something he’s more than happy to see.</p><p>“No? I’ll tell you then,” they continued. “Nothing, they did nothing! They never helped us, busy with drinking themselves to oblivion!”</p><p>There were a few cheers among the soldiers, though not a lot. Eren looks at the table of the officers and holds back a laugh when he sees Levi’s incredibly annoyed expression.</p><p>“So we decided to steal their alcohol supplies so that they can’t do it anymore!”</p><p>Eren’s widened eyes come back on Hange, who’s grinning proudly.</p><p>“Come on, soldiers! Let’s go and drink everything!”</p><p>This time everyone cheers, and a few soldiers are designated to bring the alcohol in the mess hall.</p><p>An hour later, they’re all more or less inebriated.</p><p>Armin laughs at something Jean said. Jean is totally drunk, and if it was anyone else, Eren might be worried. But it’s Jean, so if he ends up throwing up all night long, it serves his horse-face right! Armin only drank a bit, but his tolerance at alcohol is very low. He will be hungover tomorrow, but nothing too strong. Sasha and Connie are doing silly acrobatics in a corner of the room along with a few newbies. It’s actually both hilarious and impressive to see what figures they’re able to make, and Eren marvels at their ability keep their dinner and alcohol down with the time they spend upside down. When he hears the cheers around them, he understands that it is somehow a contest about who makes the best acrobatics, even though he has no idea how it is rated and by who.</p><p>He smiles when they both stumble and lay aside each other, laughing as if the night would never end. That’s how Eren wants to remember them. He turns his head back to see Armin and Jean still laughing together. He isn’t surprised. Those two always got along well, and now that alcohol makes Jean’s nonsense sound less stupid, Armin just seems to find him funny. Even Mikasa’s smiling next to them, but Eren supposes it’s more because their blond friend is hilarious like this.</p><p>He has drunk far less than his friends, because there’s someone he wants to see after, and that someone might not appreciate if he shows up drunk. But now, he’s definitely in a full nostalgia mode while his friends are still in their over excitation phase, and Eren decides that it’s his cue to leave.<br/>
He might do something stupid otherwise. Like crying. Or worse, hugging the horse-face because he might appreciate Jean, deep down. Not that he’d ever admit it aloud. He wonders if he should tell something to his friends. They will see each other tomorrow in the morning after all.<br/>
That’s stupid, but he wants to say goodbye. He wants to enjoy the time he still has to make sure the people he cares about know he loves them. But it might just break the mood, and he doesn’t want to do that to his friends. So he just gets up, memorise their faces, smiles and laughs, and decides the goodbyes can wait the morning. They already know everything anyway, and how he values their friendship.</p><p>Mikasa gives him an interrogating look, and Eren smiles at her.</p><p>“I’m going to walk a bit,” he says, and she nods. She relaxes and looks back at Armin who says something stupid that makes both of his friends laugh.</p><p>Eren turns around and leaves the loud soldiers behind.</p><p>His first destination is the kitchen. He takes out a tray and two teacups, then puts water to boil. When it’s ready, he leaves and climbs the stairs to where Levi’s room is.</p><p>That’s comforting how familiar this feels. Every night for a few months already, he did this exact ritual, taking a quiet tea with Levi in his room before the captain came with him in his cell to lock him up. Most of the time, they would stay silent as Levi went through his paperwork, always refusing Eren’s help, but sometimes they would speak a bit or play chess. Eren has come to love these moments when suddenly, Levi isn’t Humanity’s Strongest nor a captain, just a comrade Eren trusts and knows. Just a man he cares for deeply.</p><p>He knocks at the door, and when Levi opens it he looks surprised. He frowns slightly, taking in the tray in Eren’s hands, and Eren loves the way his grey eyes show that he’s happy to see him. It’s not obvious, but he’s learned to see this kind of things. The blinking of an eye, the frown of an eyebrow, the twitching of a lip. He likes to think that he knows Levi.</p><p>When the man lets him come in and closes the door behind him, Eren immediately feels more at ease. It’s comfortable, just the two of them in Levi’s room. That’s how he spent so many nights, that’s how he wants to spend his last one. He always feels like they’re out of the world. Unreachable.</p><p>“Why aren’t you down there with the others?” Levi asks, and the tone of his voice is carefully neutral.</p><p>Eren calmly settles the tray on its usual place on the desk and pours the tea into the cups.</p><p>“Who would have given you your evening tea?” He replies, turning around with a small smile.</p><p>Levi crosses his arms, not convinced by this explanation.</p><p>“I could’ve done it myself, for once,” he remarks.</p><p>Eren shrugs as if he had considered this option. He knows that Levi wouldn’t have risked to go to the kitchen with all the soldiers drunk around. The risk to come across an undignified vomiting mess of a soldier is too high.</p><p>“Well, it doesn’t bother me.” That was clearly an understatement; Eren loves taking tea with Levi. “At least I can have a cup too. It’s good tea.”</p><p>Levi narrows his eyes at him, dubious.</p><p>“Why are you really here, Eren?”</p><p>That’s something else Eren has come to like. How Levi calls him by his name. He’s no more ‘brat’, has not been for a long time. After all, they know each other for years now, and at nineteen, Eren isn’t as much of a kid he was before. When they’re alone, there’s no more ‘Jaeger’ either, and he doesn’t call Levi ‘sir’. That’s a good arrangement, he thinks.</p><p>“Because the others are drunk and I’m not,” Eren answers finally. “It’s annoying, they’ve all become stupid with alcohol. Even Armin.”</p><p>Levi seems to relax slightly. Again, it’s nearly unnoticeable, just the ease of the usual frown between his brows and his shoulders less stiffen.</p><p>“Why aren’t you drunk, then?” Levi asks anyway.</p><p>Eren smirks.</p><p>“I couldn’t have brought you your tea if I was drunk.”</p><p>Levi gives in and shakes his head with an amused sigh. Eren is pleased with himself.</p><p>“Did you really steal the MP’s alcohol?” He asks when Levi is sat at his desk and he has his usual place on the sofa. “It doesn’t sound like something Erwin would do, even in… these circumstances.”</p><p>“We bought every supply of the alcohol factories around this place. With the money we had left after the costs for the expedition. That’s not really stealing.”</p><p>Eren sips his tea.</p><p>“How to piss the MP and the nobles who gave you the money. And make us happy. Now, that’s the <em>perfect</em> plan. Whose was it?”</p><p>Levi gives him a pointed look, and Eren smiles. Hange is definitely tricky when they want to. He never knew they hated the MP that much, though.</p><p>“I see.”</p><p>Silence falls and they quietly sip their tea. Eren watches Levi from the corner of his eye. The man looks tired, even more than usual. The circles under his eyes are darker and his skin is paler. Eren doesn’t like it. He knows that Levi has acted the past few days as if tomorrow was just a normal expedition, like most of them, but he was the only one that really looked like he succeeded. The last three nights, he had done his paperwork like usual, while Eren sipped his tea in silence. However, Eren knows it’s only a façade. Like for all of them. He’s just better at hiding his emotions that everyone else. His shoulders were so stiff last night it hurt Eren just to look at them. He nearly suggested a massage, but he didn’t dare. Tonight, he wishes he had.</p><p>But Levi seems relaxed and comfortable right now, and that’s all Eren needs to know.</p><p>“You’re staring,” Levi remarks after a moment.</p><p>Eren looks back at his now finished cup of tea, not embarrassed in the slightest. If the captain remarked, it means he was staring too.</p><p>“I was just wondering what you planned to do tonight.” He says casually. He frowns suddenly. “I hope you weren’t going to do paperwork,” he adds, “because that would be a shitty way to spend your last night alive.”</p><p>“That’s still better than being in the same room as a hundred pissed and filthy soldiers and having to bear the noise and the vomit smell.”</p><p>“You’re right,” Eren agrees with a disgusted wince. “I left before it came to that, and I absolutely don’t regret it.”</p><p>He doesn’t insist. If Levi wants to tell him what he had in mind, he’d do it. He’s nearly certain Levi weren’t really planning to do paperwork.</p><p>Levi watches him in silence, and Eren knows he’s wondering why he’s staying.</p><p>Because he wants to, damn it. Levi always seems to think that Eren’s here because he feels compelled to. He doesn’t, he just genuinely like spending time with the other man.</p><p>“Chess?” He suggests, and after an careful glance to his features, Levi nods.</p><p>Eren relaxes and gets up to settle the board. Levi takes his place on the sofa and helps him place the pawns, and Eren sits on a chair in front of him.</p><p>“You don’t have to stay,” Levi says right before they start to play. “I won’t lock you up tonight.”</p><p>Eren freezes. His eyes meet Levi’s grey gaze.</p><p>“You won’t lock me up,” he repeats, incredulous. It would be the first night… <em>ever.</em> Since four years ago when he entered the Survey Corps after the trial, he <em>always </em>slept chained in a cell. That was the MP conditions for him staying alive. Thinking about it, Eren is really pleased Hange ‘legally stole’ their alcohol.</p><p>“No,” Levi confirms. “Erwin agrees. You can sleep wherever the hell you want, even if it’s in the fucking stables. But I suggest you take that empty bed in the boy’s dorm of our squad.”</p><p>Eren grins, finishing to settle his pawns.</p><p>“Wow. There should be last nights alive more often.” He looks back at Levi and his smile softens. “And I still want to stay.”</p><p>Levi looks down at the chess game, and Eren watches him affectionately. He likes when he catches him off guard.</p><p>“Don’t think I’ll let you win,” Levi growls gazing back at him, and Eren chuckles.</p><p>“Why would you? I don’t need this to beat you.”</p><p>It was <em>absolutely</em> false. Eren never wins.</p><p>This time isn’t different.</p><p>“Could you at least pretend you’re disappointed?” Levi asks at the end of the game. “I enjoy it more when you pout.”</p><p>Eren smiles. He truly doesn’t look like he just lost the game. But he’s used to it, so he doesn’t expect to win anymore. It doesn’t prevent him from trying, though. That’s how he is.</p><p>“You look more displeased than me,” Eren teases. “You could at least <em>smile</em>.”</p><p>“Shut up, Jaeger.”</p><p>Eren laughs and helps Levi put away the board. It would usually be the time where they would go to his cell, but not tonight. So as Levi put the game away, Eren stays pointedly sat on his chair, making the other man understand he won’t leave unless he’s asked to.</p><p>“Is the tea still warm?” He wants to know. He actually doubts it.</p><p>Levi touches the teapot and shrugs.</p><p>“Not cold yet.”</p><p>“I could go in the kitchen and boil water.”</p><p>“I think you would get lost, at this hour.”</p><p>“Just tell you want me to stay with you,” he teases.</p><p>“No, actually, go in the kitchen. You’re annoying.”</p><p>Eren smiles.</p><p>“I’d get lost.”</p><p>Levi shakes his head, falsely annoyed, and pours tea in their cup. Before they can drink it though, there is a knock at the door. Levi gets up with a sigh and opens the door.</p><p>“Oh, come on Levi!” It’s Hange’s voice and Eren chuckles. “Don’t tell me you’re alone drinking tea during a night like that!”</p><p>Without a word, Levi opens the door wider so that Hange can see Eren. Their eyes widen comically and Eren wonders how much they drank.</p><p>“Eren!” They yell, then they frown. “Wait, I just saw you in the mess hall. How are you here?”</p><p>“I left the mess hall an hour ago,” Eren answers, holding back a laugh.</p><p>“No, no, you were there, talking with Armin, I’m sure!”</p><p>Eren narrows his eyes, trying to understand.</p><p>“Oh!” Hange exclaims, slapping their hand on their forehead. “Sorry, I must have mixed you up with your friend.”</p><p>At that, Eren doesn’t want to laugh anymore. Hange fucking confused him with the horse-face! Offended, he opens his mouth to answer, but then he sees that Levi has a little smile —the bastard— which is more than all Eren saw in the past few days, and suddenly he relaxes and silently thanks Hange.</p><p>Levi’s smile is always something he longs to see.</p><p>He must have been staring (again) because Levi clears his throat and turns to Hange, once more looking annoyed.</p><p>“Why did you come, Four Eyes?”</p><p>Hange smiles at him, taking out a bottle previously hidden their back.</p><p>“Because I was sure you’d be here alone sulking like an old man,” they start, and it’s Eren’s turn to chuckle and collect a glare from Levi. “I decided to bring this and keep you company. But,” they look at Eren, “since you already have company, I’ll only leave the bottle and go back with someone funny. Like…” they seem to think. “Like Erwin!”</p><p>“Erwin,” Eren repeats in disbelief. He knows Erwin is less serious than it shows, but to think that Hange finds him funny… They wave at him and smile again.</p><p>“Bye, you two!”</p><p>They tuck the bottle in Levi’s hands and leave without another word.</p><p>“I wonder how much they drank,” Eren chuckles when Levi has closed the door again.</p><p>“They were faking it,” Levi answers with a shrug. “They were not that pissed. Just wanted an excuse to give us a bottle.”</p><p>Eren watches him curiously.</p><p>“How do you know?”</p><p>“Hange genuinely pissed is fucking messier. And disgusting. They drool everywhere and can’t walk on their own. Like a fucking baby.”</p><p>“Now I’m interested to know when you were drunk together,” he smirks.</p><p>“I wasn’t drunk,” Levi retorts immediately. He pauses. “Do you want a glass?” He asks, showing the bottle. “It’s not the same cat piss that you had down there. Hange fucking chose a good wine.”</p><p>“Then I can’t say no,” Eren smiles.</p><p>In the end, they don’t even drink half of their glass. Both of them don’t want to fall asleep and don’t remember the night anymore, or at least Eren doesn’t want to and hopes it’s the same for Levi. Levi who at some point ordered Eren to sit on the sofa next to him because ‘watching you shift on that fucking chair because it’s uncomfortable is fucking annoying so move your ass here’.</p><p>So here they are, sat in silence next to each other, something that should be uncomfortable but really isn’t, their bodies close but not touching. And here is Eren, acutely aware of the warmth of Levi’s body a few inches away, and that he shouldn’t notice things like that.</p><p>“It’s funny,” he says at some point. “I’m gonna die tomorrow, and I don’t have any idea of what to say. It should be time for big confessions and heart wrenching farewell, shouldn’t it? It’s always like that in the stories.”</p><p>“Probably the characters in your stories aren’t as stupid as you,” Levi retorts immediately, and Eren chuckles.</p><p>“Well, that must be it.” He pauses. “Since you’re not as stupid as me, you should have something to say. Do you have a question you want to ask? I promise I’ll answer.”</p><p>Levi stays silent for a few moments.</p><p>“Even if it’s dumb?”</p><p>It sounded so unlike him that Eren turns his head and looks at him, frowning.</p><p>“Yeah, of course.” He smirks. “Especially if it’s dumb.”</p><p>“Why did you come tonight?”</p><p>Eren wasn’t expecting this.</p><p>“You know,” he points out, “the thing with dumb question is they have to be dumb. This isn’t a dumb one.”</p><p>“Stop saying dumb and answer me,” Levi orders, and Eren holds back a smile.</p><p>“Because I wanted to,” he replies and ignores how his heart beats faster at the confession. They don’t say things like this, the two of them. They spend their evenings together, and that’s all. It’s just… how things are. Eren soldiers on and continue, because if not now, then when? “I like spending time with you, even though you always make shit jokes and tell me I’m stupid.”</p><p>“That’s because you’re stupid,” Levi answers immediately and the tone of his voice reveals it’s just for the façade. He didn’t expect this apparently.</p><p>“Why did you think I was coming?” Eren asks.</p><p>Levi shrugs.</p><p>“I don’t know. The tea. The chess. Because you thought I’d have to lock you up. I’m not someone people usually enjoy the company.”</p><p>“Well, I do.”</p><p>Neither of them says anything after that, and this time Eren does feel uncomfortable. He didn’t really want to say these last words, and now it feels like the little balance they found these past few months started shifting. And he doesn’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing. He has to find something to say.</p><p>“Okay, it’s my turn to ask you a question,” he finally speaks. “You have to answer honestly.”</p><p>“I never agreed to that,” Levi grunts, but doesn’t add anything and Eren takes it as a permission.</p><p>“Do you have a personal bathroom or do you shower with everyone else?”</p><p>Levi freezes and looks at him in disbelief.</p><p>“You’re not serious.”</p><p>Eren turns his head too and smiles.</p><p>“I am! I always wondered how you could bear how filthy it always is in there. Even I’m disgusted sometimes.”</p><p>Levi shakes his head as if he just realized how <em>stupid</em> Eren was.</p><p>“Where did you think that door led to?” He answers anyway. “Of course I don’t go in the same room as all of your filthy asses. Or you’d clean it twice a day.”</p><p>Eren looks at the door right in front of him and thinks that Levi is right. He’s actually fucking stupid. He would gladly blame the alcohol except that he didn’t drink more than one glass in the evening. Plus the half glass of wine here.</p><p>“Why do you always fight with Jean?”</p><p>Eren frowns.</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“Answer,” Levi orders.</p><p>“I don’t know,” he replies. “He’s fucking annoying, that should be enough of a reason.”</p><p>“Fair enough,” Levi shrugs. “Though you’re annoying too.”</p><p>“Not as much as him or he’d be here with us.”</p><p>Levi glares at him.</p><p>“I might go and fetch him just for that comment.”</p><p>Eren chuckles.</p><p>“He’s probably throwing up in the mess hall, so I don’t really take you seriously. My turn.”</p><p>He thinks for a few moments.</p><p>“Do you…” he hesitates, watching Levi from the corner of his eye. He is relaxed and trusting. It’s now or never, Eren knows. “Do you have regrets?” He asks very quietly.</p><p>He’s always wanted to know. That’s probably very personal as a question, but if he never dared, he’d never have his answer. And the point of that conversation is actually not to have regret, isn’t it?</p><p>When Levi doesn’t answer, Eren starts fidgeting.</p><p>“You don’t have to say anything, of course,” he adds quickly. “That was actually a question for both of us. Do I have regrets?” He pauses and thinks about it. “I definitely do. I regret the fight I picked up with my mother the day she died for example. Maybe that’s my biggest regret. But it won’t change if I die tomorrow or in ten years, so I guess in a way it’s not a regret that matters for tomorrow. Though I do have regrets for tomorrow too. They’re just smaller.”</p><p>“What are they?” Levi asks.</p><p>Eren turns his head and stares at the other’s man profile, his heart suddenly beating faster.</p><p>“I never made you laugh.”</p><p>Levi’s eyes snaps in his and there is a flash of something in his gaze that makes Eren’s chest clench. He smiles softly. That’s true after all. Levi often smirks at him, or look amused. Sometimes he even smiles. But Eren never heard him <em>laugh</em>.</p><p>“It’s ridiculous, I know,” he breathes. “And I don’t say that to blame you or anything. I blame the titans and the fact that we didn’t win sooner. And it’s not my only regret, so it’s not a big deal,” he continues, heart still ponding in his chest. He looks away because the intensity in Levi’s eyes is too much for him. “There’s also the fact that I will never know if the ocean existed and see it with Armin, I never convinced Mikasa that living for herself was good enough, and…” He smirks. “And I never pushed Jean in horseshit.”</p><p>Levi snorts and suddenly it is easier to breathe. He doesn’t know what took over him to say something like that. He doesn’t regret it, though. That was the point of it all.</p><p>“That can still be changed,” Levi remarks, meaning pushing Jean in a dung heap.</p><p>“Would you help me? If he’s drunk right now, it shouldn’t be so difficult.”</p><p>“No. That’s disgusting.”</p><p>Eren sighs.</p><p>“Why did I hope?” He asks dramatically, then freezes and glares at Levi. “Don’t say it.”</p><p>“You’re fucking stupid, that’s why,” the man shrugs.</p><p>“I said don’t say it!” Eren protests and huffs.</p><p>He’s not really offended. Not at all, to be honest. It’s just comforting to act childlike sometimes, especially after some emotional dispense like that.</p><p>There is a long moment of silence, and Eren doesn’t know what to say.</p><p>“I’ll have regrets too,” Levi admits after a moment. “I always said to make choices in order not to, but you can’t always flee them. Sometimes, it doesn’t depend on you.”</p><p>Eren doesn’t say anything because damn, Levi’s right.</p><p>Silence falls again, and this time it feels different. As if something changed in the room. Something that Eren can’t name or explain, something that has to do with the way he listens to Levi’s breathing and finds it soothing, or with the fact that their shoulders are now touching and it burns deliciously. He’s not used to contacts between them, but it’s nice. It’s lovely, even.</p><p>He doesn’t have questions anymore, and Levi doesn’t seem to either. Eren knows it’d be the perfect night to ask everything he’s always wanted to know, like how Levi entered the Survey Corps, or if he really lived in the Underground, or what’s his best memory or things like that but… He finds that he doesn’t want to talk about the past anymore. This moment, comfortably settled next to Levi in his room is enough, he doesn’t want to bring more memories here. The Levi he cares about is the one who’s sat next to him right now. They don’t have time for something else.</p><p>They know each other enough without knowing everything of their lives, and Eren cherishes this sensation. This connection he’s never felt with anyone else.</p><p>“I’m scared,” he admits, and he’s not ashamed to say it. “I’m scared of having to watch my friends dying before I do. I want to go first. I don’t want to see them die, I don’t want to see <em>you </em>die.”</p><p>Levi doesn’t answer because they both know there is nothing to say. He just shifts a little closer, and Eren relaxes against him. He doesn’t want to leave. He doesn’t want to get up and go to the boy’s dorm with Connie and Armin and Jean. He wants to stay here until the sun comes up and they can’t stay anymore. He doesn’t want to fall asleep, he wants this night to last forever.</p><p>He knows it’s impossible, but they can pretend it isn’t. They can pretend there’s no tomorrow and that if they are touching right now, it’s not because they’re both scared. It’s just because they’re comfortable with each other, just because tonight they want to break another barrier.</p><p>This is his last night alive, and Eren wants it to be special. So he moves again, and soon he’s resting his head on Levi’s shoulder. He can feel his breathing, the way his chest moves, he can smell his odour, something he finds familiar and new at the same time, and suddenly he isn’t afraid anymore. At least for now. Because even if Levi froze at the beginning, he’s now relaxed against him, and it feels comfortable and wonderful. Okay, his own heart might be beating a little too fast to be completely at ease, but it’s definitely not because he’s afraid.</p><p>He’s acutely aware that his fingers are only inches away from Levi’s, and he wonders how his hands feel. These hands that can maneuver the gear better than anyone in this world, these hands that have killed more titans than Eren has ever seen, these hands he’s so familiar with because they play chess and hold cups of tea, and yet are foreign territories.</p><p>These hands that are gonna die tomorrow.</p><p>Eren sucks in a breath and suddenly he can’t hold himself back anymore. His hand move of its own will and he opens Levi’s palm. With his fingers, he softly follows the lines inside, explore the calluses of Levi’s fingers due to the gear. Levi’s hands are beautiful, he decides.<br/>
He lays his hand flat on Levi’s and the man who had frozen finally seems to recover his tongue.</p><p>“What the fuck are you doing?” He asks, and the tone of his voice is low and carefully controlled.</p><p>“My hand is bigger than yours,” Eren replies as if his heart wasn’t pounding loudly in his chest, and as if he could breathe properly. Which he can’t, let’s be honest. He feels like something heavy prevents him from taking normal inspirations.</p><p>Slowly, delicately, he intertwines his fingers with Levi’s, leaving the man more than enough time to move away if he wants to.</p><p>“Is that okay?” He breathes.</p><p>Levi doesn’t answer and carefully holds back Eren’s hand. Suddenly, every tension in Eren’s body disappears and is replaced by a warm feeling that has nothing to do with the temperature. He stays motionless for a long time, his eyes fixed on their joined hands, and suddenly he knows that he never felt that good in his entire life. He’s exactly where he belongs.</p><p>After some time, Levi shifts uncomfortably, and Eren freezes.</p><p>“Move,” the man growls. “Your head is heavy.”</p><p>Something painfully clenches in Eren’s chest, and he straightens hurriedly. Has he gone too far? Maybe he shouldn’t have done that. After all—</p><p>“Don’t pout,” Levi orders, huffing in annoyance.</p><p>The man moves and Eren loosens his fingers. Right. He understands the message. Levi glares at him and holds his fingers tighter.</p><p>“I said don’t pout.”</p><p>He turns around on the sofa, and without releasing Eren’s hand —which is acrobatic enough for the younger man to understand that Levi is perfectly okay with it— he carefully lies down and settles his head on Eren’s lap. He sighs comfortably, and Eren relaxes too.</p><p>Levi watches his face for a few seconds and squeezes his hand.</p><p>“Stop holding back your smiles. You fucking keep doing that tonight.”</p><p><em>You don’t have much of those left,</em> Eren hears, and he agrees.<br/>
So he lets a small smile grow on his lips, and observes Levi as he closes his eyes. He looks peaceful, like that. His features are softer, the furrow between his brows is eased, and his dark hair falls on his forehead. Knowing that Levi allows himself to be this vulnerable in his presence makes something warm expand in Eren’s chest.</p><p>His eyes follow the curves of Levi’s eyes and nose and lips, and he finds him beautiful. When he’s only Levi, the man that makes shit jokes and calls him stupid, and not Humanity’s Strongest or captain. Just… Levi.</p><p>Eren would be okay staying like that until morning comes. He’d watch the other man rest and enjoy the trust placed in him and try to forget how unfair things are. He’d think about their best memories and count Levi’s breaths and it would be okay. He’d think about how beautiful and dangerous the man is at the same time and remember how much he loves it.<br/>
But Levi opens his eyes, and there’s an intensity in his gaze that makes Eren understand things will not happen like that. He doesn’t know if it’s his point of view, or the light, or something else, but suddenly Levi’s eyes are somewhere between grey and blue, and they’re shining and alive, and they’re beautiful. Eren’s breath stops against his will, but he doesn’t care. He feels like as long as Levi watches him with <em>those </em>eyes, he doesn’t need air to live. Which is pretty ridiculous, because now his lungs are burning. And no matter how much he breathes in, he feels like he will never catch his breath again.</p><p>He doesn’t care.</p><p>He doesn’t want to be scared anymore. He doesn’t want to regret something tomorrow, because it’s his last opportunity to do things. It’s the last night he spends with Levi. So, without averting his gaze, he speaks.</p><p>“I’m glad I’m here,” he breathes. “You’re the only one I wanted to spend this night with.”</p><p>Levi swallows.</p><p>“You’re the only one too,” he murmurs, and Eren can’t breathe anymore because these words could mean so much.</p><p>That’s when <em>it</em> crosses his mind.<br/>
And that’s ridiculous, really. Why today, why not three months or two years ago? Why today when they don’t have a future anymore?</p><p>But <em>it </em>crosses his mind, and Eren doesn’t know what to do about it. Doesn’t know he could ever want <em>that</em>. But when he realises how fast his heart is beating, how good it’s feeling to have Levi right there, trusting him, saying <em>‘you’re the only one’</em>, when his eyes fall on the other man’s face and finds him beautiful, then move to his lips… Well, it isn’t that surprising that he wants to kiss Levi.</p><p>Maybe he should’ve seen it coming. All these evenings spent just the two of them in this room where the world seems far away and brighter should’ve been a clue. When he couldn’t look away from Levi in training, when he wanted to offer comfort because he knew the other man was exhausted, when they played chess and it never mattered if he lost because he was playing with Levi, he should’ve known. He should’ve known that the fastening of his heart, the way his lips are always about to smile when they are together, or how he feels dependent on Levi’s smirks weren’t just an expected relation between an officer and his soldier.</p><p>What he’s known all along is that things were always different with Levi. What they shared was never the friendship he felt for Armin or what bonded him and Mikasa. It was as intense, or even more, but it was never the same. He’s never really thought about it. It was normal, it was because Levi was Humanity’s Strongest, it was because Eren admired him, it was because things never seemed acquired with Levi.</p><p>And yet, here he is, only realising now that maybe Levi is more than just a ‘different kind of friend’. In a way it makes him sad. They don’t have any time left. Eren would’ve wanted to think about it, to slowly understand what it meant to want to kiss Levi and feel his heart beat faster every time they’re close. He would’ve wanted to live it fully, to explore it, to know exactly what made him lose his breath.<br/>
He would’ve wanted to fall completely, slowly, properly in love with Levi.<br/>
Instead, it all feels rushed. As if the knowledge that they would die tomorrow forces him to acknowledge a truth he doesn’t know if he is ready to face.</p><p>His eyes focus back on the present, and he realises two things.<br/>
First he’s still staring at Levi, and the man is staring back, and there’s a light in his eyes Eren would like to understand.</p><p>Second, they’re gonna die tomorrow. Both of them. And he doesn’t know for Levi, but if he doesn’t do something about his sudden craving <em>now</em>, he’s gonna regret it for the rest of his life. Which is not long, he admits, because it can be counted in hours, but he already has too many regrets. Not one more.<br/>
Levi seems to have similar thoughts because he straightens up and takes support on his hand that isn’t holding Eren’s next to Eren’s lap, and suddenly he’s so close. Closer that they’ve ever been. Eren loves the light in his eyes and feels his breath against his lips, and he wants to kiss him.</p><p>“I…” he starts, but his voice is shaky. “I want you to know…” he succeeds to whisper, “I want you to know that no matter what waits for us tomorrow…”</p><p>Levi tilts his head on the side, and he frowns.</p><p>“Shut up, Eren,” he interrupts him, and his gentle tone softens his words.</p><p>“No,” Eren insists, still searching in Levi’s gaze. “I want to say it.” He takes a deep breath, and when he talks, his voice is firm again. “I told you earlier about my regrets, but if I had to choose one thing I don’t regret… It would be staying by your side for that long. And playing chess with you during endless nights, and losing every time. It would be seeing every part of you you’re willing to show me, and it would be saying those words tonight. I know there’s no future, and I know it doesn’t matter because of it, but… it feels right.”</p><p>Levi stares at him for a long moment, before parting his lips.</p><p>“It matters even more because there is nothing after tomorrow,” he says quietly, and Eren feels his heart clench. It’s more difficult when Levi is saying it. Levi shouldn’t die. It’s wrong. Eren knows he’s not indestructible, that he’s only human but… it’s <em>wrong</em>. Levi isn’t supposed to lose a battle.</p><p>Eren chases these thoughts, because they cause a sick feeling in his stomach.</p><p>He will never know what pushes him to say the following words. Stupidity, probably, but he can fool himself and say it was bravery. They are close notions anyway. Or maybe it was just to distract his mind from the images of a dead Levi it was conjuring. It doesn’t matter, what is important is that he says it.</p><p>“I want to kiss you.”</p><p>It was only a whisper, but the words echo endlessly in his own head, and suddenly Eren only hears his heart beating erratically. Levi’s eyes widen slightly, but there’s a flash of amusement in his gaze, and Eren slowly realises what he just said.</p><p>“I mean, it’s not exactly —well, it <em>is</em> but…”</p><p>“You should really shut up,” the man repeats.</p><p>There’s a beat of silent, and Eren realises how close they are. Their noses are nearly touching, and if he tilts his head…</p><p>Levi’s lips brush against his, and Eren forgets everything. His eyes fall shut, and he draws out a shaky breath. It’s not enough, not enough and he craves for more. Levi kisses him again more firmly, and the sensation of <em>those </em>lips against his is dizzying. His entire body feels numb except for his lips and racing heart, and Eren raises his shaking fingers to Levi’s neck. The skin is warm and soft and addicting. He carefully slides his hand on the undercut, enjoys how it feels under his fingers, enjoys how Levi melts against him when he slowly caresses it. Levi gently bites his lower lip, and Eren holds back a moan. His lips part, and now Levi’s tongue is against his, and he wants more of it, and he wants to remember <em>everything</em>. He wants to know exactly what Levi tastes like, what he loves, what makes him— and <em>oh</em> <em>fuck do that sound again</em>. He sighs heavily and Levi presses him more firmly against the back of the sofa. He’s more than willing to let him do so. The only thing that Eren can feel is Levi’s neck under his fingers, his lips against his, and their hands tangled together, and it feels <em>wonderful</em>. Eren never imagined what it would feel like to kiss Levi. He never knew he’d like to do it until this evening. But somehow he knows that he could never have imagined it good enough.</p><p>The world suddenly crashes back around them when Eren finds out he hasn’t breathed for too much time. He reluctantly lets go of Levi’s lips and tries to recover his breath. He might have felt embarrassed if Levi wasn’t in the same state at him. He doesn’t want to open his eyes, and the distance between them is unbearable, so he just leans in to press his forehead against Levi’s.</p><p>He feels like he belongs here, always has.</p><p>“Next time you wanna make out for that long,” Levi breathes, “you fucking warn me so I don’t fucking suffocate.”</p><p>Eren chuckles softly, and because he can’t resist, presses again his lips against Levi’s.</p><p>“Okay,” he whispers when they break apart long seconds later.</p><p>After a long moment, Levi pulls away.</p><p>“The sofa isn’t comfortable. Let’s move to the bed.” He pauses, and when Eren opens his eyes he sees uncertainty at the back of his gaze. “Or you could…”</p><p>“I’m staying,” he interrupts before the other could tell him to go to the boys’ dorms. Then he adds, “If you’re okay with it, that is.”</p><p>Levi squeezes his hand, and smirks.</p><p>“Only if you wash your face before.”</p><p>Eren nods with a little laugh.</p><p>A few minutes later, they’re together in Levi’s bed. It’s awkward at first, but they quickly grow accustomed to the contact between their bodies. It’s funny how easy and natural it is for them to be so close. Their intertwined fingers lie on the bed in the small space still separating them, and Eren can’t tear his eyes away from Levi’s face in the darkness.</p><p>“I didn’t expect my evening to go like this,” he admits quietly after a moment.</p><p>“You thought you’d be tied up in your cell, didn’t you.”</p><p>It doesn’t sound as a question, but Eren answers anyway.</p><p>“Yeah. This is much better,” he adds with a soft smile. He knows Levi can’t really see him, so he doesn’t bother to hide the deep affection he knows must show up on his face.</p><p><em>Deep affection</em>. He chuckles softly. That’s <em>love</em>, he corrects himself.</p><p>“What is it?” Levi asks.</p><p>“Nothing.”</p><p>Levi doesn’t answer, and Eren moves even closer. That’s when he realises that Levi is suspiciously still, and that his breathing sounds shallow. Eren frowns, suddenly feeling uncertain.</p><p>“You’re uncomfortable,” he breathes. “Is this not okay?”</p><p>Is this not what he wanted? A knot forms in his throat as he tries to understand what’s wrong.</p><p>“Do you wanna have sex?” Levi blurts out, and Eren freezes.<br/>
He feels his face heating up and he’s finds himself grateful for the darkness, because he must be redder than he ever was.</p><p>“What?” He answers very eloquently.</p><p>“That’s often what people want when they’re desperate,” the man continues, and now that Eren isn’t taken by surprise, he hears the stiffness and unease in his voice.<br/>
So he tries to think about it, because he wants to answer properly. Does he want to have sex with Levi? Well, that’s a difficult question. Twenty minutes earlier he didn’t even know he wanted to kiss him. Sex just seems… in an entirely different dimension at this point. He’s comfortable right now, and he doesn’t want to move. It feels enough to have Levi against him and his hand in his, and it’s enough to kiss him. The answer seems obvious.</p><p>But maybe it’s not the same for Levi. Eren tries to read the man lying in front of him, and when he finds out that he can’t because of the darkness, he decides that the best answer is the honest one.</p><p>“No, I don’t want to,” he whispers carefully. He actually feels Levi relax next to him, and he knows they’re on the same wavelength.</p><p>“You won’t regret it tomorrow, will you?” Levi’s voice is still tense, though less than earlier.</p><p>“I won’t,” Eren answers firmly. “And you?”</p><p>“No.”</p><p>Eren relaxes again, and this time he feels that they’re both comfortable. While a not so long time ago his heart was beating wildly in his chest, and he felt like he couldn’t breathe, now it’s just the opposite. He’s more relaxed than he ever was, and breathing next to Levi is the easiest thing in the world. It’s just… natural. What they share right now is obvious, Eren realises. It was always bound to happen. The sun is bright, the rivers flow, he loves Levi and they’re comfortable together.</p><p>His lips stretch again in a smile.</p><p>“Do you want to know something I never told anyone?” He asks maliciously, because he feels confident and euphoric.</p><p>“Tell me,” Levi says, and Eren is glad to hear his voice is back to its confident and bored and somehow affectionate tone.</p><p>“I’m terrified of mice.”</p><p>Levi freezes, and Eren knows he’s smirking.</p><p>“Is that so?” He sounds amused too.</p><p>“Yeah,” Eren continues, not embarrassed in the slightest. He likes to think that Levi is the only person in the world to know this, even if it’s completely ridiculous. “One day when I was little, one of them climbed me during my sleep and… it shat on me. On my <em>face</em>, Levi. It was horrible.”</p><p>It starts as a low sound and suddenly, Levi is <em>laughing</em> and Eren feels like he might burst because this is too much. Unable to refrain himself any longer, he closes the short distance between them and when his lips find Levi’s again, he thinks that he’s finally found his place in this world.</p><p>When they part long minutes later, Levi moves closer and passes the hand that isn’t tangled with Eren’s behind Eren’s back and holds him tight. Eren closes his eyes peacefully, and together they listen to the noises of night birds behind the window, they listen to each other’s breathing and each other’s heartbeats.</p><p><em>You don’t have much of those left,</em> a voice says at the back of his mind, and Eren doesn’t listen to it. It’s easy to ignore the entire world in the warmth of Levi’s embrace. The feeling of Levi’s beating heart against him is both what anchors him in the present and what allows him to forget everything.</p><p>Maybe it’s his favourite sensation in the world.</p><p>The day finds them in the same position, still awake and breathing together. It’s intimate and it’s enough. The sky is slowly turning yellow when Eren talks again for the first time in hours.</p><p>“Levi?”</p><p>The man hums in answer, and Eren feels the vibrations of his voice in his chest. It’s comforting.</p><p>“Thank you.”</p><p>Eren doesn’t really know why he wants to thank Levi. Probably for everything they lived together these past few years, for all the times Levi protected him or gave him choices or guided him, and for this night.</p><p>Levi doesn’t reply, but it’s okay. Eren didn’t expect an answer. Silence falls again on the room, and Eren focuses on Levi’s breathing to avoid thinking about what’s coming closer and closer.<br/>
In. Out. In. Out.</p><p>“I never used this bed before,” Levi whispers after a moment.</p><p>Eren smiles, because Levi’s voice is low and calm and intimate, and he loves it. It feels like a secret. It feels like there’s just the two of them in the entire world.</p><p>“There’s a first time for everything,” he breathes out in answer. “Where did you sleep?”</p><p>“On my chair.”</p><p>Eren freezes, and a silent laugh shakes him.</p><p>“That’s why you were always tensed in your back and shoulders,” he says finally. He can’t help but picture Levi stubbornly staying at his desk to do his paperwork, or cleaning his gear, and he realises he shouldn’t be surprised.</p><p>“That’s not funny, you git,” Levi growls.</p><p>Eren shakes his head, a small smile on his lips.</p><p>“I know. Sorry.” If it had been any other day, he wouldn’t have laughed at all. He’d have wanted to take care of Levi and make him sleep on his bed to erase the exhaustion, but today it’s just funny. And ironical. “That’s the first time I use this bed too,” he adds, and somehow he can <em>feel</em> that Levi is amused.</p><p>There was a knock on the door, and reality crashed back painfully around them. Eren feels his mind go blank and has to restrain a shiver. <em>That’s it</em>, he thinks. <em>The end of it</em>.</p><p>“Levi, you’re late.” It was Hange’s voice. “We need you for the last preparatives.”</p><p>“Fuck off,” Levi replies.</p><p>Hange ignores his answer.</p><p>“See you in a minute.”</p><p>They hear Hange’s steps getting away, and Eren can’t help but hold Levi closer. <em>I don’t want you to go,</em> he wants to say. But he knows how selfish it is, so he doesn’t say anything and only tries to take the moment in as much as he can.</p><p>After a moment, Eren takes in a shaky breath and release Levi, rolling on his back. Levi takes support on his elbows so he is above Eren, and they stare at each other for a long time, silently, trying to hold back the bubble of warmth and blissful ignorance they succeeded to create for a few hours. Eren clings to the intensity in Levi’s gaze and wonders if the other man can read him. If he understands how much he doesn’t want to go, how much he wants to stay there forever.</p><p>Then, slowly, Levi goes down for a long and soft kiss, and Eren knows it’s a goodbye. His throat is constricted and he feels tears pushing against his eyelids, but he won’t let himself cry. He gently slides his fingers against Levi’s neck, trying to hold onto his warmth a bit longer, just a bit longer.</p><p>Their lips eventually separate, and Levi rests his forehead against Eren’s. It feels more intimate than everything they ever shared, and Eren forgets himself in the sensation. Levi’s body against his, his breath on his lips, and this feeling, so intense that it burns in a delicious way, so deep that it enfolds them comfortably.</p><p>When Levi pulls away too soon, way too soon, Eren must conjure all his will to not try and keep Levi against him, safe and warm. The action of disentangling their fingers seems to consume all his strength, and letting Levi go is the most difficult thing he ever had to do in his entire life. The warmth of Levi’s body is replaced by the cold air, and Eren feels like he’s unable to breathe now that Levi is gone.</p><p>He looks at the man dressing up, in silence. There are no words for moments like this.</p><p>When Levi is ready to go, he turns and for the first time since he left the bed, their gazes meet. It was easier when Levi wasn’t looking at him, Eren thinks. Because now all he wants to do is get up and lock the door and kiss Levi until the world ends. He wants to shout and tell everybody to fuck themselves, to let them live in peace, he wants to scream because the pain he is feeling now is physical.</p><p>But his throat is dry and he feels like his voice is too hoarse to be used, and all that leaves his lips is a whisper.</p><p>“Levi.”</p><p>Eren sees in the other man’s gaze how it shakes him, and recognises in his stiff posture the same struggles that he has. The same irrational desire to stay here, away from the world, from blood, from death. And curiously, it gives Eren the strength to stretch his lips into a slight and painful smile.</p><p>“I’ll see you soon,” he says quietly.</p><p>Levi tears his gaze away and leaves, unable to answer. Eren presses his eyes shut in order not to see the door closing.</p><p>It’s definitely not a tear that he feels, cold and burning at the same time, rolling down his left cheek.</p><p> </p><p>Less than two hours later, the entire Survey Corps is waiting in the city for the door to open. The crowd cheers around them, unaware that it’s the last expedition of the Corps, but none of the soldiers seem to hear the words thrown at them. Surrounded by Mikasa, Armin, Jean, Connie and Sasha, Eren looks right in front of him. Where Levi is.</p><p>He tries to remember everything he can from the silhouette of the captain, the way he holds his shoulders and looks bored, even from behind, even in his last day alive. He remembers exactly how it felt to breathe against him, how the undercut felt under his touch and how perfectly their hands were together. His fingers still prickle from the heat that was once against them, and he can still feel against his lips the ghost of Levi’s breath.</p><p>Eren is acutely aware of the fact that the door is nearly open, and that it’s only a matter of seconds before they leave definitely.</p><p>Levi turns around, meeting his gaze. The world explodes around them, and in an instant it’s just the two of them again. The intensity in Levi’s gaze is the only thing he can see, and suddenly everything feels okay. Eren loses himself in the blue eyes that pierces him, and a warm feeling waves in his chest. Everything feels blur, and the only thing that matters is the flame burning in Levi’s gaze.</p><p>“Eren,” Levi mouthes in echo of what Eren said earlier.</p><p>The younger man shouldn’t be able to hear him, but somehow he does and the softness in Levi’s tone is enough to make him shiver.</p><p>Eren never loved Levi more than in this moment.</p><p>The sounds rush at their ears again as the horses start to move, galloping toward the door. Soon, they will be on the other side.</p><p>Levi has looked away, but it’s okay. It’s okay. Eren is still wrapped in warmth and in a dizzying feeling, and as he raises his eyes to the sky, he slowly smiles.<br/>
He will die today, but he doesn’t have regrets anymore. There’s a laugh, a single laugh that echoes endlessly in his mind, and the memories of lips against his and of bright blue-grey eyes are enough.</p><p>As the sky appears again above him now that he passed the door, Eren feels peaceful.</p><p>They will die, but they will die fighting. They will take as many titans as possible with them, and people will remember them as the mad lunatics that died in a suicide plan. Eren likes it. In this world, madness is suspiciously close to freedom.</p><p>So he gallops next to his friends and behind Levi. The world is insanely beautiful as he runs to his death. It’s their last cavalcade.</p><p>The last flight of the Survey Corps.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I might one day write a happier Ereri fic. Maybe. One day.</p><p>English is not my first language, so if you see mistakes please feel free to point them out.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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